Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Raised to $456.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price target increased by Piper Sandler from $450.00 to $456.00 in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

VRTX has been the topic of a number of other reports. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and set a $325.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $397.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a hold rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $432.18.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of VRTX opened at $418.99 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $320.01 and a twelve month high of $448.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 3.99, a quick ratio of 3.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $407.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $400.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $1.10. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.67 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,354,013.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,250,727.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of VRTX. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% in the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.